1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image transmitting apparatus applicable to a network for enabling image transmission to plural kinds of image receiving apparatus such as an Internet facsimile apparatus and a digital multifunction apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, there exists a facsimile apparatus which transmits images to a destination side image communication apparatus (facsimile apparatus) via a telephone line. However, accounting of charge to the calling party with respect to such image transmission depends on the distance from the calling party to the destination.
Recently, the Internet can be utilized, and network environment is being arranged which enables information communication with an image communication apparatus at a remote place by allocating to a destination side image communication apparatus an address for identifying the apparatus.
However, it will take more time until image communication apparatus for transmitting images via the Internet spread to all users of image communication apparatus. Thus, at present, there are both the users of conventional facsimile apparatus for transmitting images via a telephone line and the users of image communication apparatus for transmitting images via the Internet (such as an Internet fax, a digital multifunction apparatus, a printer or a personal computer).
Under such conditions where a plurality of image transmitting routes exist, designating an image transmitting route and a destination or the like in every image transmitting operation may deteriorate the operation efficiency. Although a mere telephone number (facsimile number) can be inputted by the use of a numeric keypad, when images are to be transmitted via the Internet, address information of a destination need be inputted by the use of alphanumeric keys. For this purpose, a keyboard like that of a personal computer need be provided on an operation panel, which increases the size of the operation panel as well as the number of operation keys, thereby making the operation panel complicated. On the other hand, it makes input operation complicated to allocate a plurality of functions to each of the keys to reduce the number of keys.
To solve such problems, the gazette of Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 9-247334 (1997) discloses a technique in which destination-identifying information (a facsimile number or address) is in advance registered in a one-touch dial key so that the destination can be designated only by operating the key.
In the technique disclosed in this publication, destination information such as its telephone number or address is in advance registered in a one-touch dial key. Owing to the key, the destination can be easily designated without the need for inputting the destination-identifying information by operating alphanumeric keys in each time of image transmitting operation.
Recently, however, by attaching image data to electronic mail, it is possible to transmit images, via e.g., the Internet, to various kinds of apparatus such as an Internet facsimile apparatus, a digital multifunction apparatus, a printer, a personal computer, or a mobile phone. Moreover, such apparatus may be different from each other in data format that can be processed by the apparatus.
Therefore, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 2000-59595 (2000) discloses a technique of setting an image data format for a destination. In this technique, the image data format with respect to each of destinations is in advance registered. Therefore, it is possible to transmit images in a data format which can be processed by the destination apparatus.
Specifically, as shown in the description of FIG. 4 of the gazette, a look-up table including destination-identifying information and corresponding image data formats are stored in a ROM. Thus, when a destination stored in the look-up table shown in FIG. 4 is designated, the image data is transmitted in the registered image data format.
With such a method, however, only destination addresses are recorded in the address directory for designating a destination. Therefore, it is necessary to execute a step (S33 in FIG. 3 of the publication) of determining whether or not the designated destination address is recorded in the look-up table, which requires a certain period of processing time before starting of the data transmission. Such a step is necessary every time of data transmission, so that the time taken for the process step becomes a serious problem as the number of registrations increases.
Moreover, besides the input operation for designating a destination, it is necessary to input destination-identifying information (destination address) by the use of alphanumeric keys for the look-up table as shown in FIG. 4. This takes much time before the completion of registration and is troublesome.